To appreciate how much and how unexpectedly our country can change, look no further than the life and times of Judith Dunnington Peabody, who died on July 25 at 80 in her apartment on Fifth Avenue in New York.
In March of 2000, Pat Buchanan came to speak at Harvard University's Institute of Politics. Harvard being Harvard, the audience hissed and sneered and made wisecracks. Buchanan being Buchanan, he gave as good as he got. While the assembled Ivy Leaguers accused him of homophobia and racism and anti-Semitism, he accused Harvard -- and by extension, the entire American elite -- of discriminating against white Christians.
There was a time when everyone took it for granted that unemployment insurance, which normally terminates after 26 weeks, would be extended in times of persistent joblessness. It was, most people agreed, the decent thing to do.
Which political party's members are most likely to believe that Jesus will definitely return to earth before midcentury? The Republicans, right? Wrong. The Democrats.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's arrival in Washington, DC for a meeting with President Obama is the latest step in the much-vaunted "reset" in frayed United States-Russian relations.
When I was 12, my father came and spoke to my seventh-grade class. I remember feeling proud, for my rural school was impressed by a visit from a university professor. But I also recall being embarrassed -- at my dad's strong Slavic accent, at his refugee origins, at his "differentness."
On the night of May 26, I drove down to Washington from New York with my son, Adam, and his friend Daniel. We arrived at 2:30 a.m. and crashed in a hotel. A few hours later, we woke up and coaxed each other to prepare for a day at the White House. The president was hosting a Jewish heritage celebration, and we'd been able to get media credentials to cover the event. We were exhausted, but thrilled.
On Monday, June 7th, the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships sponsored a meeting on "Advancing Interfaith and Community Service on College and University Campuses."
Sounding reflective as he heads into a bruising electoral season, President Barack Obama told POLITICO columnist Roger Simon that the Gulf disaster "echoes 9/11" because it will change the nation's psyche for years to come.